Thursday, September 29, 2011

Prime Minister Netanyahu wished the world Shana Tova saying the true place under the sun for Jews is the Land of Israel.

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PM Netanyahu's Greetings for Rosh Hashana 5772

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu took the opportunity of his annual Rosh Hashanah greeting to address Israel's identity as a Jewish state - and moribund talks with Palestinian Authority officials in Ramallah.

Noting his office had received an overwhelming flood of prayers and
well-wishes for peace in the coming year, Netanyahu said peace was
dependent on Israel's strength and understanding its essential character
as a Jewish state.

"For there to be peace Israel has to be strong," Netanyahu said.
"People make peace with the strong. They don't make peace with the weak.
They push the weak aside."

"For that peace to take shape the Palestinians have to finally
recognize what you all recognize, that Israel is the Jewish state...
that the Jewish people after all their travails, after all their
agonized odysseys through ought the centuries, deserve their one and
only true place under the sun - in the Land of Israel," Netanyahu explained.

Netanyahyu said he believed the outcome of future talks would hinge
on officials in Ramallah being able to accept Israel's fundamental
character, "fairness, and the truth, and the common sense that must
accompany peace - the Palestinians finally have to do what they have
refused to do throughout the decades - recognize the one and only Jewish
state,

"And if they do, I think we'll have a very, very good year," Netanyahu said. "Shana Tova to all of you."

‘In one and a half minutes you’ve outdone every performance I’ve
ever been to… Leave everything and get into the music industry,’ says
one ‘The Voice’ judge to singer and pianist Guy Barzily.

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An updated Sufa jeep will make IDF patrols and urban welfare easier and more efficient.

Sufa

The IDF on Tuesday accepted delivery of the first of 500 Sufa 3
jeeps, an update of the jeep that has been in use by the Israeli army
and security forces since 2006.

The light armored vehicle was designed jointly by the IDF, Chrysler,
and Automotive Industries Limited (AIL) of Nazareth, and was produced by
AIL. The Sufa is based on the U.S. made Jeep Wrangler, with significant
changes and improvements to ensure that it can be used in patrol and
urban warfare situations.

The Sufa was designed as a patrol and urban warfare vehicle, and has a narrower frame,
enabling it to traverse narrow alleys in cities. When armed with a 105
mm M40 recoilless rifle, the vehicle is uniquely capable of firing
directly over its blast guard equipped hood rather than in the
perpendicular position required by most other vehicles. Improvements in the Sufa 3 include upgraded communications
and electrical systems, a special system to keep water and sand out of
the engine, night vision equipment, and other systems designed by the
IDF. The Sufa 3 Can travel up to 130 kilometers per hour, carrying a
driver and four passengers.

The IDF announced Tuesday that it was ready to begin accepting
delivery of the jeeps after having completed a series of tests and
challenges that the jeep had passed. The IDF will be receiving 500 of
the vehicles over the next five years, at a cost of NIS 40 million.

Production of an updated four-door second generation model commenced
in 2006 despite some mixed messages from the Storm's primary customer,
the Israel Defence Forces. Development of a third generation vehicle
based on the new Jeep Wrangler JK has been completed and significant production for both Israeli and foreign customers is under way.

Mahane Yehuda Market (Hebrew: שוק מחנה יהודה‎, Shuk Mahane Yehuda), often referred to as "The Shuk", is an outdoor marketplace in Jerusalem, Israel. Popular with locals and tourists alike, the market's more than 250 vendors
sell fresh fruits and vegetables; baked goods; fish, meat and cheeses;
nuts, seeds, and spices; wines and liquors; clothing and shoes;
housewares, textiles, and Judaica.

In and around the market are falafel and shawarma stands, juice bars, cafes, and meat restaurants. The color and bustle of the marketplace is accentuated by vendors who call out their prices to passersby. On Thursdays and Fridays, the marketplace is abuzz with shoppers stocking up for Shabbat.

They may look like identical aquatic twins as they glide gracefully
through the water in perfect synchrony, but Israeli Olympians Anastasia
Gloushkov, 26, and Inna Yoffe, 23, admit that synchronized swimming is a
tough sport.

"Synchronized swimming looks glamorous, but there are many hours of
stress, sweat and worrying behind it," admits Gloushkov, who with her
partner Yoffe has just qualified for their third Olympic Games in the
sport.

"In a sports career, I think every athlete feels some point of
breakdown -- a crossroads when he or she must decide whether to go on
and reach new goals -- and I've had those points, more than once,"
Gloushkov confides.

Now those doubts are behind her, however, after she and Yoffe,
coached by Gloushkov's mother, Tatiana Tsym, made the cut for the
Israeli Olympic delegation at the 14th FINA World Championships in
Shanghai in July. They will represent Israel at the 2012 Olympics in
London.

"The feeling you get after an achievement is so great and it matures you," says Yoffe. "You just want to do better next time."

Gloushkov and Yoffe both have roots in Russia. Gloushkov is the child
of two accomplished Moscow swimmers. When she was six, her parents got a
job teaching at a water sports club in Soliniki, Greece, and three
years later moved to Jerusalem. Their young daughter was already
spending lots of time in the pool.

Similar skills and physiques

"What interested me more than swimming was the dancing and the makeup
-- the things that are attractive to a girl," says Gloushkov. "That has
stuck with me until now."

Yoffe moved to Israel from St. Petersburg when she was four. "I
started swimming at age nine through a school program, and that is how I
met Tatiana [Tsym]," says Yoffe, who is a lifeguard at the Jerusalem
Ramada hotel and lives in the capital with her mother.

When Yoffe was old enough to compete on the senior level, Tsym paired
her with her own daughter. The two had similar skills and physiques,
particularly their legs, which are a central focal point of synchronized
swimming routines.

Tsym coached them for the 2003 world championship in Barcelona that
provided their ticket to the Athens Olympics in 2004. Afterward they
parted ways for a time but were back together for the Beijing Games in
2008 and have remained a duo.

Anastasia Gloushkov.

Gloushkov and her fiancé, who works in high-tech, are raising his
seven-year-old son in the Jerusalem suburb of Moshav Shoresh. She is
studying toward a bachelor's in social sciences and human resources at
Achva College of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, and dreams of a
career outside the water.

"After I finish my third Olympics, my wish is to take all this
experience from sports and propel it to somewhere it would be useful,"
she says. "Perhaps I could be some sort of adviser in how to deal with
stress and set goals and achieve them."

Yoffe also sees London as her final hurrah as a competitive swimmer.
"I want to start university and study biology, so it would be hard to
continue," she says.

An unlikely sport in Israel

Being a synchronized swimmer in Israel is a challenge in itself.
Their typical training day at a Jerusalem neighborhood community center
encompasses 90 minutes in the gym and three hours in the pool. It was
tough finding a place willing to give them exclusive use of the pool on a
regular basis, and this pool isn't even regulation size.

"In Russia and Spain and the US, [synchronized swimmers] get all the
hours in the pool they need, while we only have a half-Olympic pool for a
certain amount of time," says Yoffe. Israel has a few full-size pools
elsewhere, but given a chronic water shortage, most are smaller.

"Being an athlete in a kind of sport that is really about water, in a
country where we have a problem with water, is pretty funny," adds
Gloushkov. "When I see that I represent Israel in this specific sport,
it makes me proud of what I put into it, and I am thankful for the
Olympic Committee seeing the potential here."

She doesn't think most soccer-addicted Israelis know what to make of
synchronized swimming. "To a non-professional eye, it's difficult to
understand the difference between opponents. It's a beautiful sport to
watch, but it's less interesting than a match of tennis or football,
where you can really understand who is against whom. Here you are
looking at routines and scores, and it's much more like ballet than
athletics."
Nevertheless, both Gloushkov and Yoffe say they love their country and are proud to represent it through their chosen sport.

"We have a chance to show a nicer part of Israel -- more cultural,
happier, more cheerful," says Gloushkov. "When the world sees all the
problems Israel has, I can show it from a different point of view, and
that makes me feel like an ambassador of good will."

Before training for the 2012 London Games, Yoffe and Gloushkov aim to
have a bit of a breather for a few months. Yoffe will concentrate on
matriculation exams so she can enter college after the Olympics.
Gloushkov will plan her wedding, scheduled for 11/11/11.

"We are giving our muscles some rest," says Gloushkov, but there's
certainly no possibility of atrophy. The lighter schedule includes
several European competitions and an international qualifying open.

Song Lyrics:Synagogue, Rabbi's talk, going on for a while, can you check the clock, huh Cantor's opera, lost my spot, do you know the place, choir in the slotWine we drink, with family now, good deeds you do, good for your soulFish head, ram's horn, shofar blow, give some money, appeal for dough

Yo, I'm returnin' to the fold can you explain mo'Got this desire to know Torah scroll, say helloOur prayers rock, yeah, we're the Jews and we questionGot the pride, just cant stop, our lives are changin'Rosh Hashanah's in the house tonight

All the world is passing through the lightLet's all get written in the book of LifeShana Tova -- It's High Holiday time

Taking stock is what we do tonightShana Tova -- it's High Holiday timeLet's all get written in the book of LifeBlow the shofar and -- Shuckle!

Three times a day I'm shucklin'shucklin', shucklin'

Shofar blast, all across the world we will do this taskApples and honey, feelin' glad -- now stop, never get mad

Fill the Kiddush cup, my friends aroundBooks are opened up, the challah's roundAll our history, we see it nowNow please hear our plea, we're prayin' now

A new column: Food enthusiasts at Taste TLV give their verdict on the best that the Tel Aviv dining scene has to offer.

For
those hungry carnivores in Tel Aviv, finding a juicy meaty burger,
kosher or non-kosher, may be easier than you think. Many burger joints
around Tel Aviv offer an assortment of burgers, from lamb to beef to
even vegan.

Many believe it’s the meat that makes the burger,
others believe it’s the various toppings that complete the dish.
Whatever you believe to make a delicious burger, you can be sure to
satisfy your requirements at one the many fine burger restaurants around
Tel Aviv.

Wolfnights

If
you’re craving a succulent cheese-burger, look no further than
Wolfnights. Wolfnights provides the meat lovers of Tel Aviv with a
variety of burgers and toppings, such as grilled onions, white cheddar,
and their delicious house garlic mayonnaise. Be sure to try the
“Flagship Burger,” a juicy blend of beef and lamb topped with emmental
cheese and garlic mayonnaise or the “Wolfnight Special,” a tender all
beef burger topped with crisp tomatoes and onions, white cheddar cheese,
bacon, and the Wolfnights special sauce.

Not a huge meat lover?
Wolfnights offers vegetarian options as well that are crafted using
fresh ingredients. Even if you order out, you will be delighted at the
freshness of the burger, since these geniuses specially pack all parts
of the burger separately. Never worry about a soggy bun again.

If
you’re a true meat lover, you will find that meat in Israel mostly
falls short of expectations. The expectation to that theory is Meat Bar.
Meat Bar ages their meat three weeks before it is served, using simple
presentation to emphasize the taste of the meat itself. You won’t find
any superfluous nonsense to take away attention of the meat.

The
menu offers an array of high quality meat, from grilled sirloin to
carefully crafted hamburgers. You can also find dishes such as bacon
skewers, Carpaccio, and spare ribs. Meat Bar also serves beer from eight
local brewers as well as a rich liquor menu to enjoy with your meal.

Sderot Chen 52, Tel AvivPhone: 03-6956276Not kosher

La Champa

La
Champa offers a traditional Spanish twist on burgers, creating special
teeny weeny tapas burgers. Guy Shevach opened La Champa after being
inspired by Barcelona’s culinary scene and the concept of the Ceva Bar -
bringing together small mouthwatering dishes, sparkling wines, and a
relaxed setting.

You can find a variety of Spanish-style tapas
at La Champa, all around NIS 20. Meat is a favorite ingredient here,
crafting dishes such as Choriquante, small bites of spicy sausage, and
mini-burgers paired with potato croquettes. Along with perfectly crafted
tapas, La Champa pairs each dish with a crisp taste of sparkling wine.
You can walk in, order a bottle, take the glasses, and sip your
sparkling wine near the fountain on Rothschild Boulevard.

Nahalat Binyamin 52, Tel AvivHa’arbaa 16, Tel AvivNot kosher

Brewhouse

The Brewhouse, located on Rothschild Boulevard, houses not only a
variety of meat dishes, but a selection of locally crafted beers ready
to be enjoyed with each meal. The menu is full of dishes that combine
good food with beer, such as hamburgers, hot dogs, sausages, buffalo
wings, and other assorted pub snacks.

Make sure to indulge in their hamburger, that intricately mixes the
patty with bread and seasons the dish with spices straight from your
mom’s cooking. The first time I ate this burger, I couldn’t stop eating
until I was so full I was literally crying. The refreshing beer is
freshly produced in-house, right before your eyes.

Rothschild Blvd 11, Tel AvivPhone: 03-516-8666Not kosher

Homeburger

If you can’t see through the grease and the smoke, at least you can
taste the freshness of the ingredients. What you taste is 100 percent
fresh rib-eye meat of some of the highest quality, which is stored in a
temperature moderated cooling room. Every day by hand, the meat is
ground and mixed with the secret recipe of herbs.

The buns come warm and fresh,while the veggies and toppings are crisp
and flavorful. Though they do have quite a responsive delivery service,
we suggest you take a trip down to enjoy the fresh, juicy burger
straight off the grill.

Don’t be put off by the looks of the joint, it may not be the classiest
of places, but once those cheeseburger juices are dripping down your
chin you’ll forget where you are. Other popular dishes include spicy
chili wings, refreshing chicken salad with mango vinaigrette, and
Chicken Ciabatta.

Ibn Gvirol 137, Tel Aviv. Phone: 057-934-5590 03-544-8282Not kosher

Kassandra Grunewald is a co-founder of TasteTLV.com.
She has been an avid foodie since she can remember making meals out of
weeds and sand in the backyard for her imaginary guests.

DEAD SEA – FashionTV takes you on a
luxurious weekend to one of the world’s magical wonders – The Dead Sea.
See a weekend filled with spa and culture at the Royal Rimonin Hotel
with appearances by several Israeli celebrities.

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After
38 years, Israel has officially reopened its embassy in Ghana,
which was historically the first African state to establish diplomatic
relations with Israel.

Amb Sharon Bar-Li with Ghana President John Evans Atta Mills

After 38 years, Israel has officially reopened its embassy in Ghana.
Israel's ambassador in Accra, Sharon Bar-Li, presented her credentials
to Ghana's President John Evans Atta Mills, at a traditional and moving
ceremony in which the name "Israel" was beaten out on "talking drums".

In her speech, Ambassador Bar-Li noted that this event marks the
deepening of the historic relations between the two states. Ghana was
the first African state to establish diplomatic relations with Israel,
and Israel was very active in Ghana in the areas of development,
training and education, and provided assistance in setting up local
institutions. Ghana established itself as a preferred destination for
investments in the western part of the continent and is an economic
target for Israeli businesspeople.

New
Generation Technology, founded by Jewish and Arab entrepreneurs to
develop ideas by Arab-Israeli scientists, utilizes the vast knowledge
that the Israeli-Arab community has amassed in life sciences.

When it was first established back in 2002, there were many doubters
who said that an Israeli high-tech incubator founded by Jewish and Arab
entrepreneurs to develop ideas by Arab-Israeli scientists would never
work.

Almost 10 years later, the New Generation Technology
(NGT) incubator in Nazareth is not only still on its feet, but is
thriving, with 20 startup companies in various stages of development.
"We've succeeded in providing Arab entrepreneurs with a platform to turn
their ideas into businesses and it's become known throughout the
Israeli-Arab sector that such an opportunitity exists. I think that's
been our biggest accomplishment," says Nizar Mishael, the chief
financial officer of NGT since 2006.

Originally founded by five leading Israeli-Arab business people and
Israeli-American investor Davidi Gilo, NGT under its longtime CEO Nasri
Said continues to operate on a combination of private and government
funding, receiving an annual budget from the Chief Scientist's Office of
the Industry, Trade & Labor Ministry. The only incubator of its
kind in Israel in that it's a joint Arab-Jewish venture, NGT is housed
in a building on the edge of Nazareth's industrial zone, a predominantly
Arab city about an hour's drive from Tel Aviv. Next door to NGT are two
companies with like-minded agendas - MIT Soft, a high-tech manpower
company set up to get around the obstacles facing Israeli Arabs, and Tsofen, a non-profit organization that prepares Arab science graduates for the job market.

"The founders realized that in the 1990s, there was great potential
for the Arab sector in the way of entrepreneurship," says Mishael. "But
the problem was, until NGT, only one or two high-tech companies had been
established by Arabs. They understood that there was a need for a
company to nurture the Arab entrepreneur - and to also provide
opportunities for Arab doctors, PhDs and lab workers."

A pure true partnership

[The following quotes were taken from a previous interview.]

Davidi Gilo, a successful Israeli businessman who has initiated many
projects aimed at coexistence between Jews and Arabs in Israel, says the
idea behind NGT was one of full Jewish-Arab partnership.

"There are many Israeli initiatives that open factories and do
different things with Arabs - but basically the Jews are the employers
and the Arabs the employees," says Gilo. "NGT is the only project in
Israel that is a pure true partnership between Jewish and Arab
businessmen in Israel. We're all board members, and we've all invested
the same amount of money."

NGT's location in the Galilee, where more than half the population is
Arab, enables NGT to utilize the vast knowledge that the community has
amassed in life sciences - a talent pool that includes approximately 700
PhDs, 3,000 MDs and about 700 Israeli Arabs working in the pharmacology
and pharmaceutical fields.

"Most of our companies are based on medical devices and biomed
products," says Mishael. "And that's not by coincidence. The Arab sector
in Israel is known to have a huge potential in the fields of medicine
and biomed. And even more, the companies that we're founding are
developing products and devices that are going to help that same
population by stimulating the economy and creating jobs."

After nearly 10 years in existence, NGT can boast some impressive
numbers. Twenty-one companies have been established, with 10 of them
graduating the incubator period to stand on their own, and five
companies raising more than $8 million. Even more impressive is that
eight of the companies have been established in the last 15 months,
indicating that NGT is on the upswing. Amid a flurry of activity,
Mishael still sees many challenges facing the incubator as it readies to
enter its second decade.

"There are two ways to measure our success - one is if we're bringing
in money to the company and the second is if we're succeeding in
establishing Arab entrepreneurs and raising awareness of careers in the
Arab sector," he says.

"In the first goal, we haven't succeeded yet but we're optimistic.
Most biomed and pharma sector companies take on the average of eight to
10 years to establish themselves. And because we didn't often have the
funds to support these companies, they had to raise the funds
themselves, which caused further delays. Regarding the second vision,
we've been a great success - establishing companies, developing
entrepreneurs including women. Some of our companies have succeeded in
raising money and in this way, we've become the leaders in the Arab
high-tech sector."

According to Mishael, NGT's success has prompted many young Arabs to
enter the scientific fields, and the company regularly takes part in the
Young Entrepreneurs program, an Israeli version of Junior Achievement.
"We're helping to create the new generation of Arab entrepreneurs," he
says.

No less important, though, is NGT's role in developing a model for
coexistence and cooperation between Jews and Arabs in Israel. "I don't
want to say that we're singlehandedly making peace, but at all of our
companies, there are Arabs working next to Jews and it's a very good
atmosphere," says Mishael. "I think that probably many of the Jews had
never worked with Arabs before, but they all give 100 percent to each
other and we're managing to bridge the gap between Arabs and Jews in
Israel."

So what do the next 10 years look like? Mishael is intent on raising
more funds, establishing more companies and building NGT to the level
whereby it can support a wide portfolio of companies and give them the
stepping stones to success. "And ultimately, we'd like to give the Arab
entrepreneur in Israel a chance to see some money from his idea - and be
able to reinvest it into the community. That's our basic goal and hope
for the future."

Based on its track record so far, NGT is on the right path to achieve that vision.

One of NGT's big success stories brings a smile to everyone's mouths.
That's because the product developed by Fluorinex and its founder Kamal
Khwald whitens teeth. Khwald, from a small village near Nazareth, holds
an MSc in applied chemistry from Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and is
a specialist in electrochemical reaction and metal electroplating.
Previous to founding Fluorinex Active, he was owner and CEO of a metal
finishing company. He established Fluorinex Active at NGT in 2004.
Following its two-year incubator phase, the company signed a long-term
strategic alliance with Syneron, that enabled it conduct clinical
trials, file patents and sign worldwide distribution deals for a number
of products based on the tooth-whitening patents.

Metallo Therapy is a relatively recent addition to NGT's portfolio,
but one of its prime movers. It was founded in 2009 by Dr. Amal Ayoub, a
physicist from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev who is believed to be
the first female life sciences Arab entrepreneur in Israel. Ayoub
developed the company's DNA irradiation cancer therapy, which irradiates
cancer tumors with atomic particles as a prelude to radiation therapy.
According to Ayoub, the particles absorb the radiation and release it at
more focused strengths in the area of the tumor. Until now, there was a
problem injecting these metals into the cells, because they were
unstable and were liable to be toxic when interacting with the body.
Metallo Therapy's process attaches a coating to these particles that
prevents them from interacting with the body, rendering the particles
non-toxic.

The company recently received a $4 million investment from Arkin
Holdings and its president Mori Arkin, a sign of confidence in Ayoub's
therapy. "We decided to invest in Metallo Therapy because we believe it
has innovative technology for treating cancer, excellent basic science,
and management with the necessary skills. We also believe that the Arab
community has much talent in the life sciences, and that investments of
this kind will help promote Jewish-Arab cooperation in various fields,"
Arkin Holdings pharma division director Pini Orbach told Globes in May
upon the announcement of the investment.

Currently, small animal trials are being conducted, with a long road
ahead before the innovation developed by Ayoub is eventually employed on
human patients.

One of first companies founded by NGT is still one of its most
promising. Nutrinia, established in 2003 by Prof. Naim Shehadeh , a
leading researcher in the field of juvenile diabetes and head of the
Pediatric Diabetes Clinic at the Rambam Medical Center in Haifa, is
developing bioactive food supplements for infant formulas and animal
feed based on a novel micro-encapsulation of insulin.

Its goal
is to make infant formula closer to mother's milk, and the company is
currently focused on supplementing pre-term and term infant formulas
with insulin, which is present in human milk but absent from infant
formulas originated made from powdered cow's milk and soy.

"We have found that insulin has a very positive effect on the entire
system, and leads to rapid maturation of the intestinal enzymes. When a
premature bottle-fed baby is given insulin-enhanced formula, its GI
tract interacts with insulin and matures faster," Shehadeh explains,
adding that the effect is local, meaning the insulin does not go into
the blood and interfere with the natural sugar/insulin balance.

"We looked on the market and we did not find any baby formula with
insulin," says Shehadeh. "The reason insulin is not in formula is
because it is very sensitive to heat and mechanical stress, and usually
destroyed in formulas. We developed a new technology to keep the insulin
bioactive. We also have a usage patent."

Nutrinia has completed
phase I clinical studies of InsuMeal, its trademarked first range of
products consisting of pre-mixes that combine microencapsulated insulin
with food-grade compounds to supplement infant formulas and bring infant
formula closer to mother's milk.

Rhythmic gymnast Neta Rivkin on Tuesday won a historic medal for Israel
at the 2011 Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships in Montpellier,
France after coming in third in the hoop individual final with 28
points.

The gold medal was won by Russian Olympic champion Evgenia Kanaeva,
who scored 29.3 points. Her teammate Daria Kondakova came in second with
29.05 points.

Rivkin (R) with her medal on the podium

In addition to her bronze medal, Rivkin ranked seventh in the ball final with 27.375 points.

"There are no words to describe what I'm feeling now," Rivkin said
after the medal ceremony. Words cannot describe my joy. I just want to
remain focused in order to continue representing the country with
dignity and taking the first significant step – the criterion for the
London Olympic Games."

Culture and Sports Minister Limor Livnat congratulated the new medalist, saying that "Neta Rivkin's accomplishment is huge. In spite of her young age, Neta is one of the most important ambassadors of Israeli sports thanks to her persistence and excellence.

"I congratulate her for becoming Israel's greatest rhythmic gymnast
after winning the first-ever medal in the world championship."

On a makeshift runway in NYC, ancient Middle Eastern cultures combine
into a singular, modern aesthetic. This is inSHALLOm, a project by
fashion designers threeASFOUR meant to link Jewish and Arab aesthetics
to demonstrate how the visual world binds these cultures to one another.
Earlier today, threeASFOUR launched their Spring Summer 2012 collection
as a part of New York’s Fashion Week. A big part of their new
collection is the inSHALLOm project, which is a series of partnerships
to bring both Arab and Jewish communities together through artistic
collaboration. Both peoples are of course, intrinsically linked through
shared cultural heritage in the Middle East, as both are born out of the
Abrahamic faith and are cousins both linguistically and culturally.

threeASFOUR is working with local artisans and manufacturers to
create a contemporary, affordable line of fashion and accessories
influenced by both Middle East cultures. The goal is for the products to
reflect their shared background, with elements of each culture molded
into a single representation of what the two peoples have in common.

More than just a series of hybrid designs for the fashion industry,
threeASFOUR hopes that this will spark a new beginning of cross-cultural
exchange. A quick look at the backgrounds of the designers and you can
see that threeASFOUR embraces diversity as it stems from their very
origins. Adi Gil was born and raised in Israel; Gabi Asfour is of
Palestinian descent born and raised in Beirut and Angela Donhauser is of
Russian and German descent, born in Tajikistan and later raised in
Germany. Fusion is a central tenet behind the work of threeASFOUR, and
through design, they seek to create unity. More than just unity of form
and function, any time you have three people in a room, as the saying
goes, you get four opinions. But having designed together for over a
decade, Adi, Gabi and Angela are able to reflect off the same sense of
unity they seek to find in their work.

Coming up for the inSHALLOm project in November 2011 is a huge
opening event at Tel Aviv’s Beit Ha’ir museum, complete with music,
photography, architecture and more to, as threeASFOUR put it “promote
cultural understanding through aesthetic unity.”

Yoko Ono who is going to contribute to the Beit Ha’ir Tel Aviv show,
was in attendance today, along with her son, Sean Lennon (pictured
above).

We’ll have more for you ahead of the Beit Ha’ir exhibit, so stay tuned!

John Baird, Foreign Minister of Canada addresses the
General Assembly during the 66th U.N. General Assembly at UN
Headquarters Monday, Sept. 26, 2011.

Canada used its United Nations speaking slot Monday to lambaste
opponents of Israel as no better than the appeasers who allowed fascism
and communism to flourish before the Second World War.

Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird delivered Canada's
views to the General Assembly in a speech that put meat on the bones of
the Harper government's unflinching support of Israel.

"Just as fascism and communism were the great struggles of
previous generations, terrorism is the great struggle of ours. And far
too often, the Jewish state is on the front line of our struggle and its
people the victims of terror," says a prepared text of Baird's remarks.

"Canada will not accept or stay silent while the
Jewish state is attacked for defending its territory and its citizens.
The Second World War taught us all the tragic price of 'going along'
just to 'get along.'"

Baird made no direct mention of the Holocaust in which
six million Jews died at the hands of Nazi Germany. But he evoked the
era when he quoted Winston Churchill as saying "an appeaser is one who
feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last."

Baird reiterated Canada's opposition to the recent Palestinian bid to secure UN recognition as a state.

The UN Security Council became seized with the matter
on Monday for the first time after Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas
delivered his own forceful speech advocating the move.

"We supported the aspirations of those peoples who
sought for themselves and their countries brighter futures during the
Arab Spring that just passed," said Baird.

"But we will not go along with the unilateral actions of the Palestinian Authority."

Baird repeated Canada's call for a negotiated settlement between the Israelis and Palestinians.

The no-holds-barred address also took aim at the UN
itself, for allowing despotic regimes to hold memberships on, or occupy
the chair of, major committees.

"The greatest enemies of the United Nations are not those who publicly repudiate its actions," said Baird.
"The greatest enemies of the United Nations are those
who quietly undermine its principles and, even worse, by those who sit
idly, watching its slow decline."

Baird backed that argument by citing North Korea's
recent rotating presidency of the UN conference on disarmament, which
Canada boycotted, along with Iran's vice-presidency of the General
Assembly and its seat on the commission on population and development.

Baird's unflinching defence of Israel was another reminder to the Jewish state that it has a friend in Canada.
Last week in New York, Prime Minister Stephen Harper
affirmed his support for Israel in a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu.

And Immigration Minister Jason Kenney told another UN
gathering that Israel is being targeted by a "new anti-Semitism" that is
"now disguised as anti-American, anti-Western and anti-Israel, but it
ultimately espouses the same old hatred and intent."

Baird said Canada would not "go along with appeasement
of the former (Moammar) Gadhafi regime" in Libya. And it has imposed
tough new sanctions on Syria because it cannot "go along" with the Assad
regimes killing of its own civilians.

Baird also took aim at the UN for past resolutions
that have criticized Israel, votes that Canada has boycotted in the
Harper era.

"Canada will not go along with a double standard that
castigates some UN members for alleged failings while ignoring the
notorious abuses of others," said Baird.

He said the Harper government plans to follow through
with its election promise to create an office of religious freedom
within the Foreign Affairs Department in Ottawa.

He said Canada will not "go along or look the other way when a minority is denied its human rights or fundamental freedoms."

As examples of persecuted religious groups, Baird
cited Christians in China, Egypt and Iraq, as well as Buddhists and
Muslims in Burma.

He added: "Gays and lesbians threatened with
criminalization of their sexuality in Uganda. And other minorities
subjected to persecution, oppression or violence."

Zurer, who has appeared in many Israeli films and television series, is one of the most acclaimed Israeli actresses of her day. She was nominated for awards at the Jerusalem Film Festival, the Israeli Academy Awards and the Israeli Television Academy Awards. She won Best Actress awards for her roles in the Israeli film Nina’s Tragedies and Betipul, an Israeli drama series which was adapted into the award winning HBO series, In Treatment. Aside from Betipul, her past television roles include Israeli series Inyan Shel Zman, Florentin, Zinzana, Hadar Milhama and others.

Early Life

Zurer was born and raised in Tel Aviv. Her father was a government worker and her mother spent World War II hiding in a convent in Czechoslovakia.
After the war, Zurer's mother was reunited with her parents, former
sawyers who survived the war by hiding. The family relocated to Tel
Aviv, where Zurer was born and raised.

After finishing her military service, she moved to New York, where she developed her acting skills.

Our Mission

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prosperity of Israel. Through sharing biblical, historical and political
perspectives, we seek to strengthen the deeply rooted connection
between the People and the Land of Israel.

We are an independent organization that welcomes members from all around
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Monday, September 26, 2011

Palestinian
President Mahmoud Abbas has launched an international campaign to
achieve recognition by the United Nations for an independent Palestinian
state. Abbas and his international supporters claim that only Israel
(with the United States) stands in the way of this act of historical
justice, which would finally bring about peace in the Middle East.

This
video debunks the Palestinians' claim and shows that Abbas has been
lying about the origins and history of the conflict. Palestinian leaders
have rejected partition plans that would have given them much more land
for their independent state than the Jews were offered for theirs.
Rather than being the innocent victims of a "dispossession" at the hands
of the Israelis, the Palestinians rejected reasonable compromises and
instead pursued their aim of getting rid of the only Jewish state in the
world.

The IDF, as part of national effort to help Palestinian Authority
cancer victims, treated children by the disease with a trip to a special
day of fun last week – with trips to the zoo and the beach!

Thousands of PA Arabs receive medical treatment in Israel on a yearly basis.

Efforts to improve the emotional well-being of these patients involve
taking children undergoing cancer treatment and their families out for
day trips outside of the hospital. Civil Administration Health
Coordinator Dalia Bassa works to ensure that patients with serious
illnesses receive comprehensive treatment and care.
There are currently 180 Arab pediatric cancer patients from Judea and
Samaria in Hadassah Hospital, of whom 50 have received bone-marrow
transplants.

A group of PA children receiving cancer treatment at Hadassah
Hospital and their families visited the Ramat Gan Safari, Jaffa
beachfront and Holon bowling alley last week.

The trip was made possible thanks to a coordinated effort by the
Israeli Civil Administration, the Israel Cancer Association and
volunteers from the “Encouragement From Ido” charity for pediatric
cancer patients in Jerusalem.

One victim, for example, Lagine Abu El Hayad of Bethlehem, underwent a
successful bone marrow transplant at Hadassah Hospital. The Israeli
Civil Administration made a significant financial contribution that went
toward finding a bone marrow donor for Lagine, as well as her surgery,
post-operation treatment and medication.

Riverdance is a theatrical show consisting of traditional Irish stepdancing,
notable for its rapid leg movements while body and arms are kept
largely stationary. It originated as an interval performance during the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest, a moment that is still considered a significant watershed in Irish culture. Riverdance is, in essence, the story of the Irish culture and of the Irish immigration to America.

Immigration Minister Jason Kenney is heading to New York to join with
other pro-Israel luminaries in protesting Durban III, a UN-sponsored
conference on racism Thursday that’s gained notoriety as a platform for
anti-Semitism.

Mr. Kenney will join Nobel laureate Eli Wiesel and former Arkansas
governor Mike Huckabee in speaking out against Durban III, the United
Nations meeting that commemorates the anniversary of the 2001 Durban
conference on racism.

The Calgary MP and 16 other speakers will headline a counter-conference
Thursday called The Perils of Global Intolerance: The United Nations and
Durban III. The lineup also includes John Bolton, former U.S.
ambassador to the UN.

“As Prime Minister Harper has said, when Israel—the only country in the
world whose very existence is under attack—is consistently and
conspicuously singled out for condemnation, we are morally obligated to
take a stand,” Candice Malcolm, a spokeswoman for Mr. Kenney’s office,
said.

The pro-Israel gathering, which takes place as Palestinians are pushing
to be recognized as a sovereign state at the United Nations, is expected
to raise concerns about how international institutions such as the UN
are being hijacked by countries to blame the West for their problems and
de-legitimize the state of Israel.
Fourteen democracies including Canada and the United States are
boycotting Durban III because of how the last two Durban forums fomented
hatred of Jews and Israel.

“Canada is clearly committed to fighting against racism, however, we
believe the UN’s Durban Conference, its declaration, and the
non-governmental activities associated with it, provide a dangerous
platform to single out and demonize Israel,” Ms. Malcolm said.

Durban III’s full UN title is the “one-day plenary event on the 10th
anniversary of the World Conference against Racism, Racial
Discrimination, Xenophobia, and Related Intolerance.” It takes place
Thursday.

Mr. Kenney is the co-keynote speaker at The Perils of Global Intolerance
conference and will also be holding a news conference to attack Durban
III along with Mr. Bolton and Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz.

The last two Durban-related gatherings have seen participants vilify Israel.

At a human-rights forum that took place before the 2001 conference,
participants adopted a document accusing Israel of engaging in genocide
and ethnic cleansing against Palestinians. A flier circulating at the
forum said; “What if Hitler had won? There would be no Israel, and no
Palestinian bloodshed.”

In 2009, Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad used a speech at Durban
II to describe the Holocaust as a “pretext” for Jews to “render an
entire nation [Palestinians] homeless.”

Kenney laces into UN in wake of Durban 'hatefest'

Canada's boycott of a controversial United Nations conference on
racism reached new heights Thursday as Immigration Minister Jason Kenney
marked the 10 year anniversary of the event by ripping into organizers,
calling them the "world's most notorious human rights violators" whose
sole objective is to attack the United States and Israel.

In
an explosive speech in New York City Thursday, Kenney defended Canada's
decision to boycott Durban III, which was taking place simultaneously.
He further condemned what he called the "new anti-Semitism" which, he
said, targets the Jewish homeland rather than the Jewish people.

His
comments came as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas arrived at the UN
General Assembly in New York to seek statehood for Palestine and as
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad caused yet another mass walkout
during the UN meeting after he laced into his usual targets.

"I
am proud to be here in New York where my country is standing against
provocation, and for peace in the Middle East," Kenney said, adding the
"pathological refusal" of Durban organizers to recognize their failure
is baffling.
"If there's one thing the self-appointed
defenders of human rights can't get enough of, it's camping out in five
star hotels in New York while slinging abuse at America and its allies."

Kenney
laced into UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay for
expressing shock that Canada and several other western democracies would
boycott the conference, while failing to "express one syllable of
dismay" that the event in 2009 was led by now-deposed Libyan dictator
Moammar Gadhafi as chairman, vice-chair Ahmadinejad and a rapporteur
from Fidel Castro's Cuba.

"It's hard to imagine a better
example of the upside-down word of the United Nations High Commissioner
for Human Rights," he said in a speech at the Perils of Global
Intolerance conference.

"This is why our government has
lost faith in the Durban process . . . We will not support an agenda
that exculpates undemocratic and oppressive regimes or glosses over
violence against Jews and Israel."
Co-hosted by the Hudson
Institute and the Touro College Insitute on Human Rights and the
Holocaust, the Perils of Global Intolerance conference coincided with
the daylong Durban III celebration commemorating the 2001 adoption of
the Durban Declaration and Program of Action — the international
community's blueprint for fighting racism.

Canada was the
first country to boycott the last UN anti-racism conference in 2009
which saw Ahmadinejad take the podium for the first time to espouse his
radical ideals. Canadian representatives walked out of the first meeting
in 2001 after it degenerated into an anti-Israel, anti-West "hatefest."

"The
Durban declaration was long on calls for reparations and compensation,
but short to the point of silence on the responsibility of corrupt
regimes to institute free political, legal and commercial systems,"
Kenney argued.

"It's an old refrain: If anyone, anywhere is
suffering, it's the liberal, democratic West that is to blame, and it's
sung enthusiastically by many Western NGO's whose capacity for guilt is
exceeded only by their gullibility."
Kenney said he got
plenty of "flack," when Canada pulled out of the last conference, much
of it from Canadian NGO's who were refused federal funding to attend.
And the reason for that refusal, he said, is that they were among the
same NGO's accredited to attend the first conference where "vulgar
displays of Nazi imagery" and "spontaneous" anti-Semitic protests
erupted.

Echoing a key highlight of his government's new
foreign policy direction, first expressed by Prime Minister Stephen
Harper in a speech to partisans earlier this year, Kenney said Canada
will no longer endorse UN processes that reward human rights abusers
with representation.

"Canada will no longer make the mistake of confusing process with results, or participation with action," he said.

"Most importantly, we will not be afraid to stand on principle and defend our own interests and those of our friends."

Five of the most important Dead Sea scrolls are now available thanks to a joint Google-Israel Museum project.

Five of the most important Dead Sea scrolls appeared on the Internet on
Monday in what their custodians say will be a broader effort to make the
celebrated manuscripts available to anyone who has a computer, AP
reports.

The initiative, a joint project of the Israel museum and Internet giant
Google, put online Monday the Great Isaiah Scroll, War Scroll, Habakkuk
commentary, Temple Scroll, and scroll of Community Rule.

Web-viewers can search high-resolution images of the scrolls for
specific passages, zoom in and out, and translate verses into English.

ACT NOW for ISRAEL: Flush ‘LUSH’ Cosmetics!

LUSH Cosmetics has quietly closed its Beverly Hills, California location several months after a group known as “Join the Boycott LA” (www.JTBLA.com) organized a protest outside the store to expose the company’s support of PLO extremism. LUSH, with headquarters in the UK and stores in over 40 countries around the world, is using its customers’ money to support the PLO’s extremist “One World Campaign”. This virulently anti-Israel organization portrays Israel as an “illegal” occupier committing crimes against “Palestine” and grossly exaggerates the suffering in Gaza, placing responsibility solely on the Israelis.

There is much more work to be done. We urge you to ACT NOW FOR ISRAEL by sending an email to customercare@lush.co.uk to protest their anti-Israel extremism.

It has come to our attention that LUSH, a leading luxury handmade cosmetics company, gives a percentage of its profits to an anti-Israel organization called “OneWorld”. Upon visiting the OneWorld website (http://freedomoneworld.org/), it is very clear that they are supported by extreme anti-Israel groups that are sympathetic to terrorist activity against the State of Israel. For example, one of the supporting groups is called “Friends of al-Aqsa”. Visiting their website speaks for itself: http://www.foa.org.uk/.

Did You Know?

Israeli scientists developed the first fully computerized, no-radiation, diagnostic instrumentation for breast cancer.

Did You Know?

An Israeli-initiated project is drastically lowering the mortality rate of Ethiopian children infected with the AIDS/HIV virus.

LIVE Talk Radio from Israel – Tuesday Nights!

LIVE FROM ISRAEL! TUESDAY NIGHTS 5:00PM – 7:00PM (EST)

Straight from the heart of Jerusalem comes the only English talk show on broadcast radio in the State of Israel. News, interviews, culture and ideas mixed with positivity and pride in the free, fruitful, and flourishing Jewish homeland.

Yishai and Malkah Fleisher, two well-known internet radio personalities, made the leap to broadcast radio on the new Galey Yisrael station in Israel, blazing a trail to create content for the growing segment of the Israeli public that speaks English. You won’t want to miss it!

We will be broadcast LIVE FROM ISRAEL every Tuesday Night from 5:00pm – 7:00pm (EST)

Click below to listen live every Tuesday!

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I never did anything alone. Whatever was accomplished in this country was accomplished collectively.- Golda Meir